"Toronto is eager to up its 'star' quotient and is also enamoured with Rondo’s resume, particularly his four all-defensive team selections (two all-NBA first team)," Wolstat reported late Monday. "He has many backers in the organization."

Toronto already has Kyle Lowry, who's playing great at point guard, but GM Masai Ujiri has reportedly been gauging his interest around the league. It's unclear exactly what the Raptors would consider offering Boston for Rondo, but they have some intriguing young talent (Jonas Valunciunas, DeMar DeRozan and Terrence Ross) plus their own 2014 first-round pick (which, unfortunately for Ujiri, probably won't land in the lottery).

Rondo rumors have really heated up recently, but the Celtics should only trade him for a home run deal. He's a four-time All-Star still under contract for a year and a half, and, assuming health moving forward, he should theoretically be entering his prime. I doubt president of basketball operations Danny Ainge wants to risk setting back the rebuilding process by moving the franchise's only star for anything less than elite value. The Boston Herald reported Tuesday that Ainge wants something "certain" if he moves the Celtics captain. Even if Boston would receive draft picks in the deal, according to the Herald, Ainge wants the selections to be top ones.

Ainge has said he will be open to any kind of deal before Thursday's trade deadline. He obviously won't be against moving veterans for draft picks and/or future financial flexibility, nor is he closed to improving the Celtics significantly if the right player becomes available. Boston has built a deep stable of assets, including a horde of draft picks, and will be looking to capitalize whenever the chance presents itself.

“Again, I think that we’ll be opportunistic," Ainge told the Boston Globe on Monday. "We’re just waiting for an opportunity to do something good. And I think it’s important, again — you can’t force these opportunities. You can’t just be so hungry for a deal that you try to do a deal. You’ve got to be patient. At the same time, you’ve got to be aggressive.”